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A Funks Grove firefighter used an exposure suit to recover a guideline used in rescues from the swollen Timber Creek along Interstate 55 on Saturday, June 26. Firefighters said water had come up over 15 feet from the normal level of the creek as they began to pull vehicles from the creek after they were swept off I-55 during what officials describe as a 100-year flood.
Floodwaters fill the 300 block of Allin Street in Bloomington on June 26.
BLOOMINGTON — Heavy rains and high waters wrecked havoc this summer for scores of homeowners, businesses and organizations in Central Illinois.
The first torrents of precipitation arrived in June 25-26, leaving basements, roads and vehicles inundated by floodwaters in Bloomington, Downs and the greater McLean County area. Around 10.6 inches of rain fell about two miles east-southeast of Bloomington, according to spotters reporting to the National Weather Service.
Illinois State Climatologist Trent Ford decreed the flooding as a “100-year event.”
Neighboring counties to the south of McLean sighted funnel clouds but no tornadoes confirmed to have touched down in the June weather event.
In Bloomington, Home Sweet Home Ministries got 38 inches of water in its basement, while the West Bloomington Revitalization Project had to replace its floors.
Workers at Home Sweet Home Ministries in Bloomington clean up flood damage in June. Heavy rains have caused damage across the region.
Even the Bloomington Public Works Department failed to escape from water encroaching on its property.
Over 40 calls in Bloomington requested emergency responses for stranded vehicles, and Bloomington fire personnel carried out rescues on at least 17 vehicles. One Heyworth resident needed rescuing after floodwaters closed in around their home.
McLean County was tapped once more by intense showers on July 16, when water covered roads near McLean and Heyworth. Responders rescued a driver who became trapped by flooding at Kickapoo Creek.
In total, $808,400 in Small Business Administration loans were provided to McLean County residents affected by flooding, U.S Rep. Rodney Davis, R-Taylorville, announced during an August press conference.
Then, in late September, the Bloomington City Council approved a plan by a 4-3 vote ordering city staff to identify existing state and nonprofit assistance programs that would fund direct aid payments to residents.
Ten East Gate neighborhood residents told elected officials Monday about the severe flooding issues they experienced during the extreme storm events that ravaged the city last month, when water and sewage from city-owned combined storm and sanitary sewers backed-up into their homes and basements.
Within the next week, a legal demand by 10 residents for a $310,000 settlement for damage compensation from the city was shut down. An outside defense lawyer for the city cited the Tort Immunity Act for why it’s exempt from liability, saying water that backed up into people’s home was an “act of God.”
In total, over 500 claims for compensation through the city’s insurer, PMA, were denied.
Bloomington public works employees unearth an old 18-inch sewer pipe that was filled with mud in July on North Mason Street between Locust and Chestnut streets. Flooding from late June’s heavy rains caused pavement collapses and other infrastructure problems throughout the area.
Earlier in 2021, The Pantagraph reported a 2014 storm water and sanitary sewer master plan had found that some infrastructure installed in the city’s expansion had deteriorated to the point where it wasn’t providing an adequate level of service.
An empty sedan sits stranded in flood waters after heavy rains Aug. 12 in Gibson City.
Over in Ford County, Aug. 12 flooding charged water into people’s backyards, basements and apartment buildings. Entire streets were underwater after heavy rains that meteorologists said were typical for a land-falling tropical system.
Pictured is severe flooding on State Street on Aug. 12 in Gibson City.
Although originally estimated as a weather event spawning around 7 inches of rain, later findings increased that to just under 10 inches of rain. The NWS confirmed it as a 1,000-year flood event.
In the fall, The Pantagraph checked in with some residents and agencies who were continuing to close out their recovery process. The Gibson Area House Rehab Foundation plans extensive renovations for 37 homes, including foundation, drywall and flooring work, plus mold remediation for 20 homes.
Lee Enterprises meteorologist Matt Holiner tells what forces were at work when up to 10 inches of rain fell on Ford County in August.
Although countless heirlooms and valuables were lot in the flooding events, residents learned the value of what a community can do as a whole when responding to a crisis.
A recap of coverage about flooding across Central Illinois from The Pantagraph.
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Both sides of Interstate 55 in McLean County opened Saturday afternoon after at least 16 hours of road crews working to mitigate flooding and collapse caused by heightened water levels of nearby Timber Creek.
The watch stretches through most of Central Illinois, covering Christian, De Witt, Logan, Macon, Mason, Menard, Sangamon, Shelby, Tazewell and Woodford counties. It also is in place for East and West Central Illinois, including Cass, Champaign, Douglas, Morgan, Moultrie, Piatt, Scott and Vermilion counties.
As of 9 a.m., the McLean County Emergency Management Agency said roads near the Mackinaw River or that abut nearby creeks are to be avoided because of standing or moving water caused by severe storms overnight.
Portions of Interstate 55 near McLean have reopened after extensive flooding Friday night and Saturday morning.
A flood warning is in effect for McLean County until 2:15 p.m. Saturday and a flash flood watch is in place until 7 a.m. Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.
Even the National Weather Service is not immune to storm damage.
Pantagraph journalists spread across the region Saturday to capture video of floodwaters from overnight storms.
Readers submitted the following images of flooding Friday and Saturday. Submit yours here.
Contact Brendan Denison at (309) 820-3238. Follow Brendan Denison on Twitter: @BrendanDenison
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Floodwaters fill the 300 block of Allin Street in Bloomington on June 26.
Workers at Home Sweet Home Ministries in Bloomington clean up flood damage in June. Heavy rains have caused damage across the region.
Bloomington public works employees unearth an old 18-inch sewer pipe that was filled with mud in July on North Mason Street between Locust and Chestnut streets. Flooding from late June’s heavy rains caused pavement collapses and other infrastructure problems throughout the area.
Pictured is severe flooding on State Street on Aug. 12 in Gibson City.
An empty sedan sits stranded in flood waters after heavy rains Aug. 12 in Gibson City.
A Funks Grove firefighter used an exposure suit to recover a guideline used in rescues from the swollen Timber Creek along Interstate 55 on Saturday, June 26. Firefighters said water had come up over 15 feet from the normal level of the creek as they began to pull vehicles from the creek after they were swept off I-55 during what officials describe as a 100-year flood.
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